[Lightscreen]
[We will not dwell too much on the civil officials, as many will be discussed in later videos. Next, let us proceed to the main hall.
You cannot visit the Wuhou Shrine without paying your respects to the big boss, Liu Bei, right?
The Main Hall of the Zhaolie Temple is the centerpiece, flanked and protected by those two galleries of heroes we just saw.
In the dead center of the hall, you have the grand statue of the Zhaolie Emperor, Liu Bei. To his right sits the statue of the Prince of Beidi, Liu Chen.
And to his left... sits a literal piece of rotten wood.]
Rotten wood?
Liu Bei's heart skipped a violent beat. On one side was his grandson Liu Chen, and on the other was a piece of rotten wood. He already had a terrifying guess.
But he forced himself to hold off on that assumption, as the young man on the Lightscreen, Wen Mang, was already speaking with a dramatic, measured cadence.
[Lightscreen]
[Since this is Emperor Zhaolie's main temple, let us follow the generational hierarchy.
First, we pay homage to Emperor Zhaolie!]
On the screen, the young man appeared. His usual playful smirk was completely gone, replaced by a solemn expression. He cupped his hands and bowed deeply to the statue of Liu Bei.
He was not the only one. Many tourists in the video did the same. Some bowing with cupped hands, others pressing their palms together in prayer. There was no noise, no running around. Just a quiet, profound respect for the monarch of the Shu Han dynasty.
In this tranquil atmosphere, Wen Mang's voice rang out once more:
[Lightscreen]
[We have already introduced Emperor Zhaolie many times, and I believe that from the Oath of the Peach Garden to the Entrustment at Baidi, most of you are more familiar with him than I am.
So, our next protagonist is the Huai Emperor of Shu Han: Liu Shan.
However, it is rather unfortunate that today there is no statue of A-Dou here, only a section of rotten wood.
It seems to say nothing, yet it also seems to say everything.]
Liu Bei and his ministers stared in dead stillness at the tree root on the screen.
So this was the future generations' evaluation of his son, the monarch of Shu Han?
And Emperor Huai? Even if Liu Bei had not studied posthumous titles extensively, he knew that the infamous King Huai of Chu was the very ruler whose foolishness had driven the great poet Qu Yuan to his tragic end.
What kind of good title was that?!
And who did not understand the metaphor of rotten wood? Confucius himself said: "Rotten wood cannot be carved; a wall of dung cannot be troweled."
The future generations were probably just sparing him the wall of dung part out of respect for his temple!
[Lightscreen]
[Let us start with this piece of rotten wood. In the earliest days, the Zhaolie Temple naturally had a statue of Liu Shan.
There is a theory that Liu Shan's surrender spared the people of Chengdu from a massacre, which was a massive contribution, so the locals actually respected him.
But in reality, the Tang Dynasty Poet Sage Du Fu's line in Climbing High: "Pitiful that the Later Ruler still shares the shrine" proves that Liu Shan's statue was kicked out at least once before the Tang Dynasty.
After the Tang Dynasty brought him back, during the Northern Song's Qingli era, the Prefect of Yizhou bowed to public opinion and threw Liu Shan out again.
During the Southern Song's Shaoxing era, he was invited back. Then, when the Ming Dynasty renovated the Zhaolie Temple, the people of Chengdu threw him out once more.
Back then, the commoners felt bad that Liu Bei was too lonely, so they invited the Prince of Beidi, Liu Chen, into the temple to keep him company, ultimately creating the layout we see today.
In ancient times, when an emperor ascended the throne, there was a ritual of three declinations and three yieldings. A-Dou managed to rack up three evictions and two reinstatements at the Zhaolie Temple, and in the end, he still never made it back.]
Just getting in and out of a temple was this complicated?!
Liu Bei did not know whether to laugh or cry, but he perfectly understood just how universally disliked his son was.
Every single time, the officials would invite him back, and the commoners would throw him right back out!
But why specifically invite Liu Chen to accompany him? Liu Bei turned his gaze to the statue of his grandson.
[Lightscreen]
[Just like his three evictions and two reinstatements, the controversy surrounding Liu Shan himself has never settled, even to this day.
But there are a few universally acknowledged facts. For instance, Liu Shan strictly abided by the Prime Minister's Memorial on the Expedition. As long as a minister was recommended in the Memorial, he used them.
Under these circumstances, he handled state affairs quite decently. For example, during Wei Yan's rebellion after the Prime Minister's death, he fully consulted Jiang Wan and Dong Yun before issuing his orders.]
What exactly is in this Memorial on the Expedition?
Everyone was dying to know.
Among the fourteen generals, some even noted the name Xiang Chong, who was mentioned in that memorial.
The list of fourteen generals had specifically mentioned that Xiang Chong was praised in this document. Earlier chat comments from the future had lamented about continuing the Memorial on the Expedition. What kind of writing was this?
Could a single memorial truly govern the state of Shu?
Faced with their curiosity, Zhuge Liang could only shake his head. He was Zhuge Liang, Chief Strategist, not the Prime Minister Zhuge Kongming of this later age.
[Lightscreen]
[But after Fei Yi was assassinated, the pool of talent from the Memorial on the Expedition was completely exhausted. Liu Shan then began to favor the eunuch Huang Hao, and from this arose the root of disaster.
Chen Shou, the author of the Records of the Three Kingdoms, out of personal grievance, described the Director of the Secretariat, Chen Zhi, as "above following the ruler's intent, below associating with eunuchs," and the Right General Yan Yu as "colluding with Huang Hao."
In the sixth year of Jingyao, 263, Jiang Wei discovered Zhong Hui was training troops in the Guanzhong region. He sent an urgent report to Liu Shan, suggesting they mobilize and prepare.
But... Huang Hao believed in ghosts and shamans, claiming the enemy would never arrive. He convinced the Late Lord to shelve the report, and the ministers were kept in the dark.
Huang Hao found a few fortune-tellers who said everything was fine, so A-Dou chilled out and did not even tell his advisors.
Then there is the famous war god Luo Xian. After the fall of Shu, he held a lone city against Wu for six months. A man of that caliber had been demoted and sidelined simply because he would not suck up to Huang Hao.]
So the state of Shu truly relied upon a single Memorial on the Expedition?
Liu Bei's anger was already rising. He had believed himself prepared for whatever incompetence his son might display.
But favoring eunuchs? The fury started to boil. And trusting shamans... kept ministers in the dark?
Liu Bei felt the world spin. His vision went black, and his knees buckled.
Zhuge Liang, reminded by Huang Yueying, had already moved together with Zhao Yun to support him from both sides.
"You little brat! How dare you!" Liu Bei roared as he recovered, his voice cracking. "The disaster of the Ten Eunuchs was only a few decades ago! Do you want to repeat the same bloody history?!"
Yet no matter how Liu Bei raged, he knew he could not interfere with what had already occurred in that other time. He could only shut his eyes in anguish.
Seeing Liu Bei lying as though lifeless, Zhang Fei hurried forward and suggested:
"Brother, how about I take A-Dou to the military camp tonight for some... special training?"
"What is the point!" Liu Bei replied, his mind terrifyingly sharp despite the pain. "He is not just wicked; he is utterly incompetent!"
"First he leaned on Kongming, then he leaned on the Four Ministers! The moment they were gone, he fell for eunuchs and shamans! In the four hundred years of the Han Dynasty, there has never been such a ruler!"
These words were exceedingly harsh. Zhang Fei was alarmed.
"Brother, A-Dou is still a kid..."
"Indeed, Big Brother, A-Dou is but four years old. It is not impossible to guide him to emulate the great Ancestor and Emperor Wu of Han," Guan Yu also urged.
Liu Bei waved them off, looking exhausted. "I am fine... wait, what is the Lightscreen playing now?"
Zhang Fei leaned in and whispered, "The Lightscreen says it is something from the future called Jingyun Dagu, a traditional Beijing drum ballad. This specific piece is called Entrusting the Orphan at Baidi City."
"I suppose it is similar to the theatrical plays we have now. Some future scholar wrote the lyrics, and it actually sounds quite nice."
"Do not speak. Let me listen." Liu Bei said, mustering his strength.
The hall fell into a rare, absolute stillness. In that stillness, the rhythmic, resonant strumming of the sanxian and the striking of the drum drifted into Liu Bei's ears, followed by the poignant singing:
[Lightscreen]
[Little A-Dou kneels before the bed, two streams of tears falling...]
Liu Bei thought to himself with a bitter smile.
Baidi City is incredibly far from Chengdu on the map. Why would I have A-Dou brought all the way there for the entrustment?
[Lightscreen]
[As your father, I have a few final words you must heed... The empire was not built by just us, father and son. It was forged through the blood, sweat, and stratagems of all the brothers, civil and military officials.
Starting an enterprise is hard, but keeping it is even harder... You are foolish and ignorant, so you must listen to the guidance of others. Leave all military and state affairs to the old Master Zhuge...]
These words are undeniably true, Liu Bei thought. The foundation of the Han was never just my foundation. So many heroes, including my strategist, came together purely to restore the Han dynasty.
Starting an enterprise is hard, but keeping it is even harder. What a profound truth.
Wandering half his life had taught him how hard it was to start, but learning about A-Dou's fate taught him how much harder it was to keep!
[Lightscreen]
[Do not bring shame upon the bond of brotherhood between your two uncles and me.
Whether in good times or ill, you must cherish Guan Xing and Zhang Bao even more...
If while you live you find no meaning, then your life is nothing,
and Zhao Zilong's deeds at Changban would have been in vain!...]
The tears finally broke past Liu Bei's tightly shut eyelids. He covered his face with one hand as the tears streamed down his cheeks.
A-Dou went in and out of the enemy lines seven times at Changban Slope.
In the Zhaolie Temple, he went in and out five times between ejections and invitations. A total of nine, the number of an Emperor. What a destiny.